It’s the small things that matter: creating an inclusive workplace culture for parents and carers
At Magenta DE&I is at the heart of everything we do. We aim to create a welcoming, supportive environment for everyone. In this blog, our Associate Director Jo Meredith, talks about how Magenta has fostered an environment for people with caring responsibilities.
“I was lucky enough to join Magenta in 2022, having worked in academia for over 10 years. As a parent of a toddler, I had always valued the flexibility that academia gave me and did not believe that a commercial firm could match it – Magenta has not only matched it, but bettered it!”
Flexibility has always been a great selling point of academia – I liked being able to set my own hours (within reason) and manage my own diary (again, within reason!). Since the Covid-19 pandemic, flexibility in the commercial sector has become more of a buzzword. But for me, I wondered how flexible a commercial firm was really going to be. Recent research published by the Fawcett Society and Total Jobs found that:
23% of mothers avoid mentioning childcare responsibilities in interviews for fear of looking less committed or capable
27% of mothers feel uncomfortable discussing the support they need with their boss
19% of mothers have considered leaving their job due to lack of support at work
Only 31% of mothers have access to flexible working arrangements
In addition, campaigning organisation Pregnant Then Screwed found that 390,000 working mums experience negative and potentially discriminatory treatment at work each year, and these numbers have almost doubled in a decade.
With all this in mind, I wondered whether Magenta was really going to be able to ‘walk the walk’ when it came to flexible working.
TREATING FLEXIBLE WORKING AS A GIVEN
From my initial interview I felt comfortable discussing flexible working arrangements, including working part-time and flexible hours. At Magenta we all work from home, which means we all have the opportunity for flexibility in our working day, and for me this means I can manage nursery drop offs and pick-ups, without needing to worry about getting to the office. Flexibility also works on a smaller level: occasionally taking time out to go to a parents meeting at the nursery; being given the option to get a train home from an away day that allows me to make it home in time to say goodnight; or discussing when would be best to conduct an interview at home in the evening (no one wants to hear a toddler refusing to go to bed in the middle of an interview, so avoiding bedtime is a must!).
BEING INCLUSIVE ON A DAY-TO-DAY BASIS
One challenge which is often raised for working parents, particularly those working part-time, is career progression. The Fawcett Society/TotalJobs research found that 44% of mothers say they feel more ambitious after having a baby, but 79% face barriers trying to advance their career. Everyone at Magenta has regular line management meetings, and for me this is a place to discuss career progression and any training needs. I have an allocated personal training budget, which I can spend as I choose – meaning I can make sure I develop my skills and knowledge to advance my career.
One of Magenta’s core values is being ‘human’ and this recognition that I want to balance career progression with childcare responsibilities is key to ensuring that I feel valued at work. There are other, day-to-day, challenges with part-time working: you can sometimes feel out of the loop, or feel you have to check work communication on your days off. At Magenta, neither of these things happen. We have daily check-ins, so at the start of the week, I can be updated on the progress of projects or anything else going on in the business. Where possible, team sessions are purposefully organised on days that I work so I know that I will have the opportunity to have my say and be included in decisions, and I won’t miss out on opportunities because of working part-time. Because of the close support of the team, I feel comfortable logging off at the end of my week, feeling everything will be taken care of and allowing me to focus on spending time with my family.
RECOGNISING THE VERY HUMAN CHALLENGES OF BEING A PARENT
For anyone with caring responsibilities, life is sometimes messy and there are unexpected challenges. I always worry about the impact on the team when my son is off sick from nursery. But any occasion I’ve had to take time off for illnesses has been met with compassion and concern for my son’s wellbeing. I have been reassured a number of times by my line manager telling me “go and be with your son, don’t worry about work. We’ll sort it out”. Through my colleagues being sympathetic and recognising that life does not always go to plan I feel supported in my job and as a parent.
These inclusive practices don’t just apply to parents – we all have flexibility in our working practices, and recognise that we all have a life outside of work. While broader moves to more flexible working are important, it is the smaller, day-to-day changes which can really help build an inclusive environment.